How to Ensure Students are Getting the Most Out of Your Remote Class
Remote learning, like remote work, has expanded significantly in recent years, but not everyone was prepared for the challenges of virtual learning and instruction. Many teachers and trainers understand the value of virtual ice breaker with large group, but they may not have the tools and training necessary to truly engage their students. Therefore, these are a few tips to help you ensure that your students get the most out of their virtual classes.
Develop Your Curriculum To Be Interactive
Your students may have different learning styles, so not all of your students will have the ability to learn the material by listening to or watching lectures on a computer screen. Therefore, find ways to build an interactive curriculum. Not only will the content of your lessons be better understood, but your students will feel more engaged and connected to you and the other students in your classroom.
Build activities, such as drag-and-drop worksheets, verbal question-and-answer periods, group projects, quizzes and simulations, that require the students to use different parts of their bodies. Include real-world scenarios that show your students how to apply their knowledge in their lives.
Encourage Participation
As in the physical classroom, some of your students may not engage in their online classrooms. Therefore, use creative ways to encourage participation, such as adopting the best Microsoft Teams backgrounds or setting up virtual breakout rooms they can work together.
Structure a question-and-answer session at the beginning or end of each lesson to ensure that your students understand the material. However, don’t hesitate to contact each individual student. These individuals may feel more comfortable speaking with you one-on-one.
Set up events or icebreaker activities to help your students get to know and build relationships with each other, so they feel more comfortable participating in classroom activities.
Build Strategic Lesson Plans
It is difficult for many children to watch long videos, and they often aren’t supervised, so they may get distracted or start doing something else while you are still speaking, so create videos that are no longer than 15 minutes. Supplementary videos that go further into detail about a topic for students who need extra help, but don’t try to put too much information in each video.
Studies show that the brain works better when it is allowed to rest. Therefore, break your lessons into smaller chunks.
Flexibility for Students
Although you have a specific curriculum that you need to cover each session and year, build some flexibility into your lesson plans. Your students may be in different time zones or may only have internet access during certain hours. In addition, not every student has the same learning preferences and capacities. Some may need extra videos and worksheets to help them cement the concepts you are teaching.
Finally, although you may have some students who are self-motivated, you probably have others who won’t do the work. These individuals may feel frustrated, uninterested or overwhelmed, so develop flexible strategies that keep them engaged and learning.
Remote learning has unique challenges. Starting with a Zoom background with company logo can encourage connectivity, but building a strategic, interactive and engaging curriculum will help your students, whether they are school-aged or adults training for a new job, will help them get the most out of your classroom.
